Show TF Te i a Substitute Sweetheart Swe lIa Wayne ayne Begins here today Although her brother Jerry forbade her to do it Ruth Dayton Dayton Dayton Day Day- ton 18 has accepted a job posing as June Bradley step sister o of Jim Bradley wealthy young Chicagoan who is Ruths Ruth's age and who Ruth resembles greatly Ruth had been persuaded to accept th the job by Joe and Clara Bradley uncle undo and aunt of Jim in whose charge June has bas been pl placed ced by her brother Ruth had been persuaded by Jo Joe Joeand Joeand and Clara that their purpose in hiring her was a humane one June the they told her was ill and could no nogo not I go with them to the bedside of Jim who vho had bad been blinded and apparently apparently fatally injured in an auto accident The deceit she was told was to soften the last hours of a dying man But in Chicago Ruth has found herself in the midst of a plot She is convinced that Joe and Clara and Pascoe the man nurse they establish in charge of Jim are eager to bring about Jims Jim's death Ruth falls in love with Jim and he with her thinking she Is June Ho He has Joe arran arrange e their marriage so June will inherit his estate if he ho dies but the marriage Joe arranges Is a fake one Ruth cannot confide her fears to Jim who is too ilL She herself is held a prisoner She has almost given up all hope when suddenly Clara points out to her a houseman she has hired calling him Rogers Rogers Is Ruths Ruth's brother Jerry Now go on with the story CHAPTER NINETEEN Ruths Ruth's knees trembled so that she could scarcely stand Her impulse was to run to Jerry and safe in his arms face taco her jailers She restrained that impulse impulse impulse im im- im- im pulse with difficulty There was something about the set of Jerrys Jerry's shoulders shoulder a sternness of his face lace that warned her not to do any any- thing timing rash Jerry scarcely glanced at her Certainly gave no sign of tion Ruth almost jumped when she heard Mrs Bradley refer to Jerry as Rogers Rogers what are you ups upstairs up up- s stairs I thought I told you to help Bette with the dishes Yes Maam Jerry had exactly exact exact- ly the right deferential pose his heels clicked together quickly he faced Mrs Bradley courteously We Ve have finished with wilh the dishes Madame Madame Madame Ma Ma- dame remembers the instructions to dust and straighten up all of the rooms 7 Of Ot course Clara Bradley was all smiles What a a. relief that the dishes are washed I scarcely knew if it wed we'd have enough left for lor lunch They are all aU washed Well go on with your our work Rogers Y Yes s Madame Jerry clicked cliched hi his heels heels' again started down the cor cor- Mrs Bradle Bradley was very cordial Rogers wait a minute minute- did you or did you OU not tell me that you were accustomed to doing all types o of house work I told you that I had served a aa as asa asa a houseman I am accustomed to all types of housework except cooking cooking- Good Then please just go ahead in your own wa way I suppose the linens need changing I suppose suppose suppose sup sup- pose nearly everything over th the house needs doing Weve We've been so shorthanded here Servants are s so ungrateful Most of them quit qui when we had serious illness in th the house That's the way with hire hire- lings Yes Madame radame Please just go ahead doing the best you can for Cor a day or two Yes Madame Jerry went on down the corridor and Clara Bradley turned to her husband You see my dear hes he's a perfect servant Youre You're wrong As usual Joseph grumbled Just the same I l' l think we could have managed the short time we wo had to manage Clara put a jeweled hand on Ruths Ruth's arm How would you OU like to take a long ride with me this morning my dear Im I'm so nervous staying around this place that I I could scream Ruth shrank from Claras Clara's effusive effusive effusive sive touch Id rather stay here if you dont don't mind Huh Feeling ver very sentimental I suppose 1 Clara Clala laughed in disagreeable disagreeable disagreeable dis dis- dis- dis agreeable lash fashion ion Well Vell I suppose suppose sup sup- pose being a bride makes one feel fee that way Stick around the house my dear if you want to Im I'm getting getting get get- Un ting out or Ill I'll go mad When Ruth would have gone to her her room Joseph Bradley stopped her Please dont don't try any of your absurd absurd absurd ab ab- ab- ab surd attempts at getting away he advised quite sociably There isn't a possible chance at your our succeedIng succeedIng succeed- succeed Ing ng you know Ill I'll be just down the corridor By the way youre you're on your second weeks week's work Ill I'll pay you rou But Ruth did not wait to take the money She Sho turned entered her own room and triumphantly pushed the bolt very loudly She could have cried with pure unadulterated joy Jerry had found her Jerry was wasn In n the house this very minute Things would happen now Oh they didn't make boys much smarter than her own Jerry She stood Impatiently at her window window window win win- dow watching the hurrying traffic It t was almost a spring-like spring day Winter certainly was on the wing In n another six weeks the lawn below below be- be low ow would be green and the great ledges hedges blossoming Lovel Lovely Place For almost the first time since she came into the house she began to admire it It was truly beautiful a great big luxurious place place and and only the he day before she had thought of it as a forbidding mausoleum a fear fear- ful fui ul prison Toda Today the coming of Jerry had put hone inne and in inv ov lit h Tint Tint- Hf 11 She She v wondered nd- nd re ho how lie ie could ld have gotten into the house Put two and two wo together slowly Of course she could not piece together the whole story tory but she was certain enough of fragments of at it She couldn't know that Jerry had called ailed Des Moines long distance the i morning of her departure gone jone the proprietor of the roomIng rooming room- room Ing ng house had said No I just dont don't exactly remember the name of f the people she went to visit Someone Someone Someone Some Some- one In Chicago Jerry made an immediate frantic trip rip to Des Moines Strange as it would seem that telephoned Information information information mation was just about the extent of all he learned first hand In the next 60 hours Ruth had left Des Moines with a very handsome well dressed man and woman Their destination was vas Chicago o. No person knew their name Jess down at the department department department depart depart- ment store said that it sounded like Radcliffe but Ruth had mentioned mentioned mentioned men men- it only once At the Hotel Fort Des Moines he hc learned nothing of any Chicago couple that fitted titled the description nor description nor at the other othe otherl hotels To the Bradleys o of Denver he paid little attention Jerry early dismissed the idea o of appealing to the police police police-he he dreaded publicity Frantic hours went by Jerry kept in constant touch with his own rooming place in Iowa City Surely Ruth would write I She jus just couldn't have gone away like this never writing never giving giving ing him a sign a as to what had be become become become be- be come of her It was on the morning o of th the fourth day after alter Ruths Ruth's departure and when he was almost worried enough to call in the police that tha Jerry got the idea of examining th the airliners' airliners passenger lists for the day Ruth had gone away He hated himself for being so be bewildered bewildered be- be and so witted slow-witted as no noto not notto notto to think of that re Perhaps be because because be- be cause hed he'd never had the luck to take an air journey himself it ha had never occurred to Jerry that Ruths Ruth's mysterious employers might travel b by air When he found the names Mr and Mrs J. J Bradley and M Miss s J J. J Bradle Bradley Chicago that was enough to make Jerry sure he had hit the right clew at last Jerry hitchhiked to Chicago He found after he had reached Chicago that there are many Bradley Bradley Brad Brad- I ley Icy families in that big cil city Even Evena a number of J. J Bradleys One by one he eliminated the J J. J Bradleys Came at last to a place that sudden hunch told him was the right place Clara Bradley herself hersel had answered answered answered an an- the doorbell She was In one of her frequent flighty and hysterical moods Jerry said politely Are You Mrs J. J Bradley Bradley Brad Brad- ley Icy 1 Clara leaped to an immediate conclusion conclusion con con- elusion Are you the man from the North Shore Employment bureau Why yes es Jerr Jerry was thinking fast This woman looked like the woman Ruth had described over the telephone Some day with the life of n a patient in his hands young Doctor Jerry will probably make as quick and as sure a decision as he made then Yes Im I'm from the North Shore bureau From then on his entree was easy Less than an hour later he was sure he hc had come conic to the right place Also he was as sure suze that something very cry peculiar was going on His Ills first firt move when he got into the service quarters was to call the North Shore Employment bureau and cancel the request for help Then he joined Bette in the kitchen Bette washed dishes and he wiped them hem Bette was grumbling Her job ob wasn't washing dishes and she didn't like it She said so em em- They struck up quite an acquaintance acquaint acquaint- ance and Jerry as one servant to another started asking a discreet question now and then Youve been with the Bradleys Bradley's long To long Bette grumbled Never thought nought Id I'd be with them long I enough nough to turn into a common dish- dish washer vasher Jerry grinned rubbed a plate unil until un un- til il it fairly shone I dont don't like it ito so o much myself ho he admitted but butt It t could be worse Someone Sick I dont don't know about that Things have lave been beon pretty awful around here lately Hows that Jerry took a long nail chance Someone sick Hed He'd that sick brother story right now Yes Mr Jim He was hurt bad badIn badin In n an automobile accident Well Vell that part of ot the story clicked Jerry took a n deep breath Plunged further Hows he coming on 1 Going to get well I I 1 dont don't know Then they seemed at a standstill for lor a time Bette washed dishes and Jerry wiped dishes She said the water was getting cold cold and and got gol warmer water He said he needed dry tea towels towels and and got dry tea towels Big Family Finally Jerry ventured another question It seemed absurd Is this a big family Any people in it besides the sick man and the dame that hired me 1 Bette laughed In great glee Dont call her a dame to her face Gee Gec wouldn't she hit the ceiling if shed she'd hear Didn't you know how many manyIn In the family when the employment bureau sent you out That's about the first thing most o of us ask I didn't pay much attention Jerry lied I needed a job so badly Id I'd have hav taken this one if there'd been 40 in the family How many many many-In in inthe the family by the way Any pretty girls 1 To Be Continued Copyright 1936 for The Telegram |